Proposal templates
Objective, approach, deliverables and fees for an engagement — structured the way a client actually evaluates a consultant.
A consulting proposal sets out what a consultant will help a client achieve, how, over what timeline, for what fee — distinct from a statement of work in that it's the pitch, sent before anything is signed.
What decision or outcome the client needs help with — stated in their terms, not consulting jargon.
How you'll get there — phases of work, not a generic methodology description.
What the client actually receives — a report, a framework, a set of recommendations, working sessions — stated concretely.
Fixed fee, hourly, or retainer, and what's included at that price versus billed separately (e.g., travel).
What you need from the client's side — stakeholder time, data access — to hit the proposed timeline.
Copy this into your own document, or build it directly as a branded page in Hanko. Bracketed text like [Client Name] is a placeholder to fill in.
Consulting Proposal for [Client Company Name]
Prepared for: [Client Contact Name], [Title]
Prepared by: [Your Name/Firm]
Date: [Date] | Valid until: [Date]
Engagement objective
[1-2 sentences on the specific decision or outcome the client needs help with — e.g., 'Evaluate whether to build or acquire a new product line, and produce a recommendation with financial modeling by Q[X].']
Proposed approach
Phase 1 — [e.g., Discovery & data review]: [description]
Phase 2 — [e.g., Analysis]: [description]
Phase 3 — [e.g., Recommendations & presentation]: [description]
Deliverables
• [e.g., Written report with findings and recommendation]
• [e.g., Financial model/spreadsheet]
• [e.g., Presentation to leadership team]
• [e.g., Follow-up working session within 30 days]
Timeline
Total duration: [X weeks]
Key checkpoint: [e.g., mid-point review at week X]
Final delivery: [date]
Fees
Fixed engagement fee: $[amount], billed [50% on start / 50% on delivery, or per phase]
— or —
Hourly rate: $[rate]/hour, estimated at [X] hours
— or —
Monthly advisory retainer: $[amount]/month, [X] hours included
Expenses (travel, if applicable) billed separately at cost.
What we need from you
[e.g., Access to relevant data/systems within the first week, two hours of stakeholder time per week, a single point of contact for questions.]
Next steps
Accept below to move to a signed consulting agreement and kickoff.
[Signature / Accept button] Date: [___]
A fixed fee for well-scoped, deliverable-based engagements; hourly or a retainer for open-ended advisory work. State the reasoning in the proposal so the client understands why.
Enough to show you have a real method, not so much that it reads like free consulting. A named phase structure with one sentence of description per phase is usually the right depth for a proposal.
No — it's the pitch. A signed consulting agreement (see the Consulting Agreement template) is what makes the terms binding.
Build it as a branded proposal in Hanko and carry it straight into a signed agreement and invoicing.
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